Party Unification Abroad
Партийное объединение за границей
Date: 1920
Source: ru:PSS/v19
Translated by: AI (Claude)

[Note: This work appears to be dated incorrectly in the source material. Internal evidence and publication information indicate it was published in 1910, not 1920.]

A foreign base is necessary and inevitable for a party that operates under such conditions as ours. Anyone who thinks about the position of the party recognizes this. However pessimistically Russian comrades view "abroad," nevertheless it will be very useful for them to know what is happening here, especially after the recent plenum.

Has unification been achieved abroad? No. And for a very simple reason: one of the sides – the Golosists – shows no desire to meet the unanimous call of the Central Committee to eliminate the split abroad. The factional "Golos," contrary to the unanimous decision of the Central Committee, has not closed down, although at the plenum one of its editors, Comrade Martov, officially declared (see the plenum protocols) that he would in any case seek its temporary suspension. Before the Foreign Bureau of the Central Committee could even take any steps toward unification, four editors of "Golos" (two of them are also on the editorial board of the Central Organ!!) issued a manifesto with a poorly disguised call not to go for unification. The existing "TsBZG" abroad ("Central Bureau of Foreign Groups," elected in Basel a year and a half ago at a factional congress of Mensheviks) did the same. This "TsBZG" now represents not even all Mensheviks, but only their Golosist part. But with the support of "Golos" it proves strong enough to thwart unification. The Foreign Bureau of the Central Committee can only appeal to the groups themselves, to party elements, and, first of all, to the workers. But – for reasons discussed below – this is not being done, or is being done extremely unsatisfactorily. As before, the Central Committee abroad can count for now only on the support of Bolshevik groups. However, lately they have been joined by Menshevik party members, enemies of liquidationism (mostly these are supporters of Comrade Plekhanov's "Dnevnik").

The fundamental stratification among Mensheviks abroad is undoubtedly of great significance, as a symptom, as a reflection of what is happening – perhaps less distinctly – in Russia as well. Menshevik party members have already passed a number of resolutions on this matter. Here are a few excerpts from them. Parisian Mensheviks-anti-Golosists (about 20 people) write: "…in No. 19-20 of this organ ('Golos') a new course is undoubtedly marked, incidentally, in Comrade Dan's article 'Struggle for Legality,' which replaces Social-Democratic slogans with a specific slogan that is, at the very least, ambiguous, reminiscent, like two drops of water, of the slogan of the 'Economist' period: the struggle for rights"… "liquidationism, denied until now by the editorial board of 'Golos,' has found frank expression in the latest issue of this newspaper." Geneva Menshevik party members (14 people) find "that the cessation of the factional 'Golos Sotsial-Demokrata' is a necessary condition for strengthening party unity."

The Nice group of Menshevik party members believes (unanimously) that "in No. 19-20 of this organ ('Golos') liquidationism has already found frank expression in a series of articles. The group finds such a position of 'Golos Sotsial-Demokrata' harmful and refuses it any support whatsoever. The group is outraged by the actions of Mikhail, Roman, Yury, who did not justify the trust of the last party congress and brought liquidationist tendencies to their terrible end in practical manifestations." The group of Menshevik party members in San Remo "unanimously refuses any support whatsoever to the indicated publication ('Golos'), as it does not share its liquidationist tendencies. The group cannot restrain indignation caused by the behavior of Mikhail, Roman and Yury." Menshevik party members in Liège write in their resolution: "Stiva Novich's letter and F. Dan's article 'Struggle for Legality' (in No. 19-20 of 'Golos') fully define the anti-party direction of the organ… 'Golos Sotsial-Demokrata' is the center around which liquidationist currents are grouped." A significant part of the Menshevik group in Zurich and the majority of the group in Bern stand on the same point of view. Supporters of Menshevik party members exist in other cities as well.

Only by rallying these elements of party Mensheviks with Bolsheviks and non-factional party members, opponents of liquidationism, could the Foreign Bureau of the Central Committee achieve results, could it help the work in Russia. Foreign Bolsheviks call on all comrades precisely for this (see the resolution of the second Paris group). The struggle with the Golosists, who are thwarting unification, and with the recallists-ultimatumists, who left the editorial board of the "Discussion Sheet" and the general party committee of the school and are also undermining party unification, is inevitable in the interests of rallying all genuine party members. This matter falls for now on the private initiative of party members, since the Foreign Bureau of the Central Committee has so far proved incapable of taking a proper position. According to the new statute, 3 of 5 members of the Foreign Bureau of the Central Committee are appointed by "nationals"; thus, the personal composition of the majority of the Foreign Bureau of the Central Committee is not determined by the party Central Committee, and on this basis unexpected surprises occur. For example, at the recent session of the Foreign Bureau of the Central Committee, a majority formed against the Central Committee line. The "modus" of group unification worked out immediately after the Central Committee plenum (in the spirit of the plenum decisions, i.e., with the demand to give all funds to the Central Committee and not to factional organs) was refused confirmation by the new majority of one Golosist and two supposedly "non-factional" nationals. It rejected the proposal (of a Bolshevik and a Polish Social Democrat) to put forward in a letter to the groups the slogan: all funds to general party institutions, not to factional newspapers (i.e., "Golos Sotsial-Demokrata"). This decision provoked a decisive protest from 2 members of the Foreign Bureau of the Central Committee (a Bolshevik and a Polish Social Democrat), who transferred this protest to the Central Committee.

"Sotsial-Demokrat" No. 13, April 26 (May 9), 1910

Printed from the text of the newspaper "Sotsial-Demokrat"